The company announced the launch of futureLab at its Disruptive Innovation Symposium, held at the National University of Singapore (NUS).
Believed to be the first of its kind in the life insurance industry, the launch marks a major investment by the company in Asia.
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MetLife Asia chief innovation officer and founder of futureLab Zia Zaman said, "Innovation in the insurance industry in Asia has been incremental and, at times, western-centric.
"We want to provide innovative solutions that meet the fast evolving needs of the Asian consumer."
The three key functions of the centre include development of unique insights, an incubator to launch new MetLife businesses and an executive briefing facility offering collaborative visioning space for the company and its partners.
By forming partnerships with key regional firms, especially from Singapore’s academic community such as the National University of Singapore, futureLab aims to help identify insights and opportunities in main drivers of market growth.
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By GlobalData"futureLab will harness disruptive innovation principles and the start-up philosophy of Silicon Valley, together with the strong creative talent pool available in Singapore, to develop solutions that meet the needs and aspirations of tomorrow’s consumers," Zaman added.
Monetary Authority of Singapore Assistant Managing Director Leong Sing Chiong said, "MetLife’s futureLab is a bold and innovative response, and stands out for its co-creation and co-development approach with key business and financial stakeholders here.
"This will help to catalyze innovative ideas, commercialize new market solutions for Asia and drive transformational growth in Singapore’s next phase of development as a global insurance market."
